Autumn in Victoria is the best time of year. Not too hot, more stable weather and the longer days are hanging in there.
The ankle hardware removal has gone swimmingly, I can get any sort of boot I want on now without it hurting. I won't get that job as an ankle photo model but hey, that's their loss!
Mrs Strapz and I went on the first ride together in a while the other weekend as a settle-in spin, it was such a joy to slow down and smell the errr... cow sh1t as we ducked our back way through Gippslands' rolling hills. Taking her on a couple of gravel roads that the maps showed to be sealed didn't win me any popularity contests but hey, a bit of dirt does improve road skills.
I enjoyed our trip so much that when my mate Tomaselli called a few days after we got back with a cheeky, "Let's sneak out for a one-night camp" I immediately said yes. Although we didn't get out of the city until two o'clock on Saturday and didn't venture much more than 150 km as the crow flies from the city centre it felt like a whole weekend away. I managed to clock up nearly 400 klicks to make it an interesting ride.
Time in front of the campfire telly is always relaxing.
Keep Ya Visor Closed
Coming to a helmet near you.
Every time we stopped, whether it was in the city at traffic lights or in a country village, the bikes got looked over by a worrying number of wasps. Tom even joked that maybe it was my bike that was carrying the nest.
I certainly made sure my visor was closed!
Told Ya Adventure Bikes Get Expensive
Here's what's left of a 790 KTM after a rough trip into the bush. Unfortunately this guy will be having a tough time with the insurance assessor, it's the second one he's immolated.
I'm sure that damage will buff out.
Keep the Cats and Dogs Out
It's hard not to sound like a used car salesperson-bloke when I like the gear we offer so much. I was reminded just how good these jackets are the other day as I weaved my way through miles of freeway car park in the persisting it down rain on the way to load a construction site up with Earmolds.
By Held adding a little stretch to their rain-over jackets, they've changed the game.
While, like any died-in-the-wool old time biker, I'd prefer to wear black, I make myself wear the anti-SMIDSY fluoro yellow.
We took the all-singing, all-dancing Andy Strapz show on the road for the first time in years. Not really knowing what to expect, other than to fly the flag and have a laugh, we sidled up to the Open Roads Rally.
First impressions were of a well-organised, friendly atmosphere. Very quickly it dawned on us that this wasn't a 'rally' as we knew it in years of yore. This was more Dakar than campfires and blind drunk, very trail bike orientated. A gymkhana event generated lots of dust and giggles.
With map-book navigation and riding skills workshops, it proved to be a new approach to the motorcycle rally. With beer at $5 a can, a standard drink voucher still had value. Food is always a problem at these events but they had a crack at a reasonable option albeit a bit light on. A band on Saturday night would have been welcome entertainment.
There's another in Lithgow in November and I wish the organisers and army of volunteers the best of luck. We are keen to get there if we can.
Unsung Hero
I've always been a fan of the neck sock and had been wearing a Buff for decades each time I rode. With something wrapped around one's neck for hours on end, the quality of the fabric is paramount. Cheap Buff knock-offs are… how do you say? Crap.
The team out the back developed our own version, made from our fabulous superfine, stretchy, luxurious Merino rib, it out-performs all other neck socks I've used.
Available in Henry Ford Black and made by our team they've become a mainstay of my riding kit. My main issue with them is that they pack so small I can never remember which pocket I stashed it in. Maybe I should just tuck one in each pocket?
Here's another installment in the series of yarns and pics of that helmet collection of Marcus's.
This hat is one of Troy Corser's helmets from 2011. While he had a Shark contract that year Marcus arranged a couple of Aria RX7s for him to use in the opening rounds in Oz and Donnington. Troy gave this used Shark to Marcus as thanks for helping out.
I think I was at Siberia as he came past in his warm-down lap doing his trademark stand-up, leg-out wheelie.
Jorge Lorenzo wore this HJC RPHA in 2013, although it's signed we aren't sure it was very worn in a race. This helmet is a combination of carbon fibre, aramid, fibreglass and organic non-woven fabric (whatever that is) claiming to be at the very pinnacle of safety at the time.
Girlie Bits
As the days start to shorten and Autumn winds start to remind us of what's to come, we're well stocked with women's reversible Mac in a Sac micro light down mid-layers.
Show your Magenta or Navy side depending on how loud you feel on any particular day. My first thoughts were that they were a little light on the down fill at 95 grams of 600 fill power but they perform much better than I ever anticipated.
They're Responsible Down Standard certified and pack into a tiny carry sack or stuff them into one of their own pockets, they're nicely cut too.
Is one of the scariest places in the world, a clogged-up tunnel full of B Doubles and tradie utes?
I had a batch of earplugs to make for a construction company so decided to take the bike into the heart of the city as parking was gonna be a real drama. I pared down my kit into a backpack, took a few deep breaths and headed off.
Holy sheet, the whole of the freeway into town was a trudging, crawling parking lot and it p1ssed it down... all the way! I filtered the length of said parking lot. Welcome back to the bike Strapz!
On the way home I found myself in the tunnel under the Choc Milk River. It was plugged with diesel smoke, huge wheels and walking pace progress.
WTF happens when you jam all them tin top, braindeads into a big concrete tube? They lose the plot! When we reach the end of that big tube, the traffic ejaculates out into a clear road like they'd just started a race. The distal end of a tunnel is always deserted even when the middle is jam-packed.
CLEARANCE
We have three pairs of these cracking Terrain TX Adventure/Enduro boots to clear. They are being replaced with a new model real soon. One of each size 42, 43, 44.
I'm sorta hoping the size 42 won't sell so I have a great excuse to snaggle them for myself!
